Page 72 of The Book Reader
Distracting me from my thoughts, he lowers his head and kisses me as we shimmer back to the castle.
Chapter 28
GAELAN
The memory Ari told me about how her grandfather's passing away made me want to go back in time, find that daemon, and make him die most excruciatingly. I didn’t show my rage to her while she was in my arms, even if my blood was boiling on the inside.
In that moment, she needed me to hold her.
We came straight back to the bedroom; we talked some more until she fell asleep in my arms.
Tilting my head down, I look into her peaceful face. Her eyes are softly closed; she is dreaming. I can see them twitching under her eyelids. Her nose and cheeks have a sprinkling of freckles over them, something I’ve only noticed now.
In some of her reincarnations, she has appeared in different forms. In others, she has retained her original appearance from her first life. I often thought that when she looked like her for the first time. She wouldn’t be taken from me so quickly.
I learned the hard way that was not the case.
Lifting one of my hands to her hair, I tease one of the soft curls between my fingers, a light smile on my lips when Iremember Maddie, who had the same hair and looked so much like Ari.
My smile drops from my face as the vision of when I last saw her flashes into my head. Sucking in a breath, trying to stop the onslaught of emotion hitting me at the same time.
After her death, I was in probably one of the darkest times of my life.
That time, it took me a while to return to the daemon my parents had taught me to be.
Closing my eyes, I let my memories of that day fill my head.
Topside 1910
Checkingthat the bedroom door is closed, I walk over to my chest of drawers and open the top one. I must be good at hiding things from my Rose—she’s not only nosey, but good at finding anything I’ve hidden. I laugh to myself as I pull out a blue ring box and open it. The engagement ring I got her last week sits inside shining.
It’s perfect.
It’s a simple ring, one that I know she’s going to love. I got the stone from a rare mine in the underworld. She’d seen some of them glittering in the rocks a few moons ago—I had to kill a few daemons for it, but. Still, it’ll be worth it to see her beautiful smile when I ask her to marry me. We mated last week, so she wears my mark again; I can’t help but smile.. Each time I mate with her, it always feels like the first time; she was perfect.
Always was.
Always is.
But I know that her non-supernatural family would love to see us married. Her father knows about our world, but he has no powers; for him to walk her down the aisle would bring him immense happiness. So that’s my plan for this evening—dinner, dancing, and then I’m going to ask my Rose to marry me.
“Gaelan?”
I jump and almost drop the ring box when I hear Maddie coming into the bedroom. “Yes, my Rose?” I wave my fingers and shimmer the ring box back into my chest of drawers. I turn to face her; her amber eyes glow brightly at me. Her hair is dark and long this time, and she’s curled it to sit perfectly on her shoulders. The red dress that’s draped over her caramel skin makes her look irresistible.
“Have you seen my silver earrings? I could have sworn I had them in my dressing room.” She turns to walk into our ensuite, grinning. I shimmer to stand in front of her, so she crashes into me, smirking when her shocked eyes meet mine. “Hi,” she whispers.
“Have I told you today how fucking beautiful you look?” I lower my head to brush my lips over her neck, breathing in her scent. “Makes me want to stay in and devour you for dinner.” I hear her intake of breath, her Rose scent getting stronger.
“What would I eat then?”
I can hear the teasing in her voice, and it makes me grin. I run my hands down her back to cup her ass, pressing her into me so she can feel how hard I am for her, how much my cock wants to be buried deep inside her wetness. “I have something for you to eat, Maddie, don’t worry…” I turn her so her back is leaning up against the wall, one of my hands moves to her thigh, and I lift it high on my hip. Pressing closer, I rub my pants-covered cock over her. “…You will be fully fed.” She tiltsher head to the side, giving me complete access to her neck. I lick along it. My fangs lower in my mouth, and I lightly scrape them over her sensitive skin.
“Gaelan?” Her voice is tinged with lust.
“Yes, baby?”
“My parents are downstairs…”
